MANILA, Philippines—The State of the Nation Address of President Benigno Aquino III “celebrates the heroism of common, ordinary Filipinos,” but failed to tackle certain issues on national policies, Senator Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said.

“He was commending these people for the good work that they have done,” Marcos told reporters in an ambush interview, referring to Aquino’s special mention for three policemen who had done exemplary service to the public.

“That’s certainly a good thing to recognize, what ordinary workers in government and out of government have been able to achieve through their own heroism,” Marcos said.

Several issues that he expected would be addressed such as “foreign policy, environmental policy, monetary policy,” were not mentioned by Aquino.

“What are we going to do to increase our foreign direct investment? All of these areas are critical so that the rest of the country knows what direction we are going to take,” Marcos said.